South Africa's most notable National Park offers incredible wildlife viewing from your vehicle.
Upon landing at the Skukuza Airport, we grabbed our rental car and were on our way to the lodging outside of the park. After over 30 hours of commuting, we grabbed some shuteye and would begin our Kruger experience the next morning.
After a quick breakfast, we made our way to the park. We entered via the Paul Kruger Gate, which has a large sculpture of the former South Africa president and a leadwood tree monument dedicated to the rangers of the park. It was interesting to learn that even if an elephant pushes over a leadwood tree, it can survive and regenerate provided a single root touches the soil. At the gate, you have to sign in and the guards do a quick check of your vehicle.
As you drive along, you'll quickly notice droves of impala, kudu, and the occasional giraffe along the road. They seem relatively unfazed by the vehicles and were certainly easy to photograph.
As we were commuting down to the the Crocodile Bridge campground, we noticed several Chacma Baboons and Vervet Monkeys along the way.
After observing a small garden that had many animal skulls on display (not as dark as it sounds), we headed north on the S28 because we read that cheetah sightings were frequent up that way. After miles of driving and seeing nothing beyond a few ostrich and giraffe, we were considering heading back to our home base. Just a few moments after discussing that, we saw a cluster of vehicles at the side of the road. Upon closer inspection, we noticed a male and female cheetah frolicking around. We were in absolute awe watching them play among the tall grass. Someone in a nearby vehicle mentioned a mother with baby cheetahs down a nearby dirt road. Again, relatively exhausted from the time change and commute, we were skeptical, but decided to check it out.
We drove a mile or two down the dirt road and again found another cluster of vehicles. Sure enough, there was a mother cheetah and not 1, not 2, not 3, but FOUR baby cheetahs that couldn't get enough of wrestling with each other and annoying their mother. It was truly magical to be a spectator of the family in the wild. After about 30 minutes of watching them, they suddenly made their way towards the vehicles. They were bounding about on nearby trees and walking the road as if the vehicles were not there. Again, an unbelievably memorable experience seeing them so close.
Thrilled with our first day, we celebrated by stopping at the Lower Sabie Camp, where we Enjoyed the view, some beer, and a fried Halloumi wrap. Here, we got to view many of the Burchell's starlings up close with their beautiful teal colors. We found that all of the camps of the park were very well maintained and had amenities beyond what we expected.
On Day 2, we headed towards Satara Camp hoping to catch a lion sighting. Within our first hour, we saw a pack of zebra and then a pack of the elusive wild dogs. Since the wild dog hunt in the early morning hours, this pack was snoozing, with many laying atop one another. One appeared to be the alpha, and either was suffering from insomnia or was simply getting up and taking stock of the surroundings before laying back down.
On the way north, we viewed the famed Baobab tree, and had sighting of warthog and water buffalo and even some up close encounters with the lonesome steinbok.
As we were making our way back toward our lodging, we our herd of elephants that would be considered "once in a lifetime." We counted over 50 elephant of all sizes parading across the road both in front and back of our vehicle.
On the third day, we made another attempt to go to known lion hotspots, but the only sightings were a crocodile lounging with a tortoise, steinbok, hippo, and a leopard tortoise on the side of the road. Having already exceeded our expectations, we decided to enjoy a lunch at the beautiful Skakuza camp.
Once our time at Kruger was complete, we headed north to the Klaserie Private Reserve.
Know Before You Go
While the distance may not seem tremendously far, the park has smaller roads and strict speed limits, so ensure you give yourself ample time to return back.
Check the park hours before you enter and be sure to exit by closing time or face a fine.
Do not run over the animal dung on the road. There are likely dung beetles taking care of it.
Never leave your vehicle unless in one of the camps. That should be mostly obvious.
If a large elephant is approaching your vehicle, you may want to turn around and head the other way.
Resources
Location
Found in the Northeast corner of South Africa, above Swaziland and east of Mozambique. To get to the park you can find into Johannesburg and then connect to one of the smaller airports in or near the park.
Video
The video below shows some of the animals we encountered while in Kruger, including elephants, kudu, impala, and giraffe.
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